Cubase 16 stacks instruments on one track, and its six-stem split is Pro only

Steinberg released Cubase 16 on 4 November. Which features you get depends heavily on the edition, so Steinberg’s own feature list is worth reading before updating.

Instrument Stacks, in Pro and Artist, combine several VST instruments, Sampler Tracks and Drum Tracks into one playable track. Each layer has its own key and velocity ranges and transposition, and a stack can be saved as a preset. It replaces the MIDI routing that layering used to take.

Stem Separation gets a new algorithm from zplane and six categories: vocals, drums, bass, piano, guitar and other instruments. Steinberg lists this as Pro only. It joins new stem tools in Pro Tools 2026.11 and Logic Pro 13 in the same week.

In all three editions, the Key Editor gains Strum, which offsets the notes of a chord, and a Stretch Selection tool for ritardandos and accelerandos without touching the project tempo. Tempo Detection is redesigned and can write straight to the Tempo Track, and Settings is now one searchable, non-modal workspace. Lyrics can be entered next to MIDI notes, which supports Omnivocal Basic, a vocal synth built on Yamaha’s Omnivocal NX engine, with two voicebanks.

Some of the smaller changes will matter more to heavy users:

• ASIO-Guard now extends its pre-processing buffer from about 100 ms to as much as 280 ms, for large sessions. Our guide to buffer size covers that trade.
• Sends double from eight to 16 per track, and cue sends from four to eight, in Pro.
• Ableton Link support arrives, along with wider MIDI 2.0 support.
• Spectral AudioWarp modes from Steinberg’s HALion team are added in Pro, for extreme stretching.

New content includes the DrumChain multi-effect in Pro and Artist, VocalTouch in all editions, the Module FM library with more than 200 presets in Pro and Artist, and five sample packs.

Updates start at €99.99 for Pro, €79.99 for Artist and €29.99 for Elements, including VAT. Anyone who activated Cubase 15 or earlier on or after 7 October gets the matching version 16 free.